So, with no Premier League action this weekend it was only fitting to make the first Friday post of 2009 about my favorite topic to rant and rave about -- the USMNT. There probably won't be too many jokes or 'Back to the Future' references, just straight analysis.
Before diving headfirst into what figures to be a meaty post, consider these two numbers:
14 -- The number of matches currently on the calendar -- without factoring the Gold Cup, which could be another six.
51 -- The number of players in Bob Bradley's 25-man roster for the Jan. 24 friendly with Sweden combined with players have been in the team over the last six months.
Suffice to say, both those numbers could increase. It wouldn't be outrageous for Bob Bradley to call in close to 70 players for National Team duty. Is this a good thing? We shall see.
Let's examine the state of the National Team ahead of the busy 2009, shall we?
Positional depth charts/analysis
(This is using the assumption of your typical 4-4-2 scenario.)
Goalkeeper -- Short and sweet, the U.S. has plenty of talent with Tim Howard and Brad Guzan as his deputy. One position Bradley doesn't need to worry about in the least. If anything, they need to work on ball distribution to start attacks. Rating: A-
Left back -- Heath Pearce is your de facto starter, though is VORP rating (value over replacement player) is pretty much zero. He's adequate, which isn't necessarily a bad thing. Pearce's only competition is Bradley's would-be adoptive son Jonathon Bornstein. This should actually be a fierce battle and which player goes to the Gold Cup and which goes to Confederations Cup will say a lot. Overall, left back remains a black hole for the U.S. Rating: C-
Central defense -- Though I like to criticize the tandem of Oguchi Onyewu and Carlos Bocanegra, they are solid enough. Will they ever be as cultured as an Italian defense? No, but for CONCACAF they're good enough. Plus they both can get forward and score on set plays, though relying on defenders for offense is a risky proposition. If there's one spot the U.S. has depth in abundance beside goalie, it's here. Guys like Jay DeMerit, Chad Marshall, Danny Califf, Michael Parkhurst and even much-maligned Michael Orozco could step in without much of a dropoff. (Whatever happened to Jimmy Conrad?) Young guys like Sean Franklin or an old hand such as Corey Gibbs could fill in for a game or two.
One thing that would be nice if is the US powers that be placed more value on skill and passing than sheer brute strength in central defenders. Aside from Mexico, the teams in the region are no physical match for the U.S. In a lot of CONCACAF games the defense only needs to make one or two plays, do we have confidence Gooch and Boca will be in the right spot when that happens? Can they cope with speed? If it were up to me, I'd give Bocanegra another shot at leftback. He's made 17 appearances for Stade Rennes there, opposed to just three in the center of defense. The club is in third place in Ligue, so Bradley must consider this option. Rating: B+
Right back -- The U.S. should be able to coax another two years of solid professionalism from Steve Cherundolo. 'Dolo might not bring a ton to the table, but he doesn't take away from it, either. He can score the occasional goal and is adequate enough with delivery from the flanks. Unlike left back there are some other options here, namely Marvell Wynne if he's able to develop some consistency. Rating: B-
Left midfield -- Until writing this you'd say this spot was locked down by DaMarcus Beasley. I like Beasley as much as the next guy and he seems to be one of the few players when he puts on the U.S. shirt shows some guts and doesn't play all wide eyed and innocent. He's been through the wars in Europe with PSV so knows how a big-time soccer player should behave on and off the field. That said, he's fallen out of favor at Rangers, making only four appearances this season. Needless to say, this is a big year for him -- will he return to MLS for a spell? (Could Bradley try to convert him to left back, a la Eddie Lewis? Beasley has always been good getting back to defense. There's time to try this. Another thought.) Bradley should give a youngster like Robbie Rogers a shot to fight for the position or show his worth at the Gold Cup. Rating: B
Central midfielder -- For the time being the U.S. doesn't have a complete two-way midfielder, like the great national teams do. Bradley, too, seems intent of playing two defensive/holding players against any and all opponents. Is this a wise decision considering there's been a bit of a departure from the 'Makalele Role' worldwide, with more emphasis on speed? We'll see.
The U.S. has plenty of thesedefensive types to provide the backline cover -- his son Michael, Maurice Edu, Ricardo Clark, Pablo Mastroeni, Stuart Holden and even Sasha Kljestan or José Francisco Torres. You could even recall a Kyle Beckerman-type, if needed. The question, how can these guys fare against the world's best? Can these control and set the tempo against Brasil and Italy at the Confederations Cup in June? Or will they chase at ghosts? CONCACAF is one thing, but this is the deep end of the pool. The U.S. is going to have to adapt it's gameplay in these games to have any chance. Rating: C
Attacking midfield/second strikers -- Landon Donovan, Freddy Adu, Clint Dempsey, even Stuart Holden. The U.S. has players for this role, but how to effectively use any and all of them remains the million dollar question for Bradley. Against stiffer competition can these guys flash their attacking prowess or simply melt into the background? At least we know Adu can take freekicks with a good rate of success. Rating: B
Right midfield -- Another soft spot in the lineup, assuming a straight 4-4-2. Are Dempsey or Donovan still wasted out here? Eddie Gaven was reborn under Sigi Schmid for Columbus this season and deserves a significant chance. Considering the lack of depth here, a player like John Thorrington could play his way into the mix, even at the age of 29. ... Rating: D+
Forwards -- The Internet fans list compared to Bob Bradley's list here are probably two different sets of encyclopedias. Bradley's list nearly begins and ends at Brian Ching, for better or worse -- depending how you classify Dempsey and Donovan. Fans like myself probably go Altidore, Cooper and then everyone else.
The good thing is that there should be plenty of competition for the striker position. It all depends how Bradley wants to play it. If he wants to go lone striker, Ching is probably best suited as a target man, but can that be counted on for enough offense with Donovan or Dempsey behind him?
One final nugget, fighting for a promotion spot Cardiff City (fourth in the Coca Cola Championship) has only seen fit to start Eddie Johnson three times, and field him nine times overall. He has zero goals and nine shots. You can't squeeze blood from a stone. Sometimes you have to pull off the Band Aid and move on, however painful. ... Rating: B-
Questions/Storylines for 2009
* Will youth be served? -- People like me like to opine ad nausea about the 'A-Team' -- Jozy Altidore and Freddy Adu. All signals from Bradley seem to point toward these two 19-year-olds playing more of a factor after the 2010 World Cup cycle is complete. Let me offer this point, although it's a bit of a stretch. Spain won last June's Euro with only four players over the age of 30 on its roster. Then coach Luis Aragones didn't have an issue with leaving off aged legend Raul in favor of younger dudes like Santi Carzola (23) and David Silva (22).
If Adu and Altidore don't show anything in the opportunities -- hopefully -- give over the year, they don't deserve a spot. But to simply ignore perhaps the best offensive player in the player pool -- Adu -- and potentially more physical striker seems counter productive. Say what you will about Adu, but he is a wizard on the ball, can take free kicks and generally makes something happen when he puts on the U.S. shirt. So what if he's glued to the bench at AS Monaco. He's a play maker, something the U.S. needs.
Let's boil it down to this, who would help the U.S. make strides toward getting past the Group Stage of the World Cup when you're planning the roster -- Adu or a guy like Ricardo Clark?
* What's the formation? -- The U.S. seems limited in a rigid 4-4-2. The personnel doesn't fit. A 4-4-1-1 or better yet 4-2-3-1 seems to best take advantage of the players Bradley has at his disposal. More than a formation, the U.S. would be well-served to develop an identity beyond that of great athletes and questionable soccer players. What
* What's Clint Dempsey's best position? -- Let's simply say that putting Dempsey out on the right side of midfield in a straight 4-4-2 is a waste. Force feeding a lineup with Dempsey and Landon Donovan also doesn't make a lot of sense, since they tend to thrive in similar pockets of the field. This gets thrown out the window if Bradley commits, like Fulham, as Dempsey as a straight-out striker, or slightly withdrawn attacker. Pair him up with Brian Ching, Alitdore or even Adu and see what happens.
* Whither Donovan? -- Are the U.S. ever going to get past the point where it's not totally reliant on Landon Donovan to win games? Will his time at Bayern Munich make him the player we U.S. fans wish he could be? (Is he coming back to the Galaxy, which could hurt affect his availability for all matches. This would be a good thing, simply to see the team exist without him, improved from his stint in Bavaria or not.) Are we just nit-picking anyway? He does put up the goals. Still, can Donovan cater his game with play alongside Adu or as a forward or even better yet on the right side of midfield? Can both he and the team adapt to bring out the best in each other?
* Can Michael Bradley become our version of Cesc Fabregas? -- Or Michael Ballack or Steven Gerrard or Andrea Pirlo, etc. Now, Bradley will never be those players, but an elite two-way midfield maestro would open up so many options for the squad. Bradley has the energy to go up and down the field and a keen eye for goal, but can assert himself and dictate the run of play? Not yet, if ever. If Bradley, or someone else can develop into a true two-way player the U.S. can revert to the 'diamond' midfield, opening up a lot of things.
* Did Bob Bradley, et al learn from 2007? -- You can't half-ass it again, well maybe you can. The Federation, you'd think, would send a full 'A' lineup to South Africa for the Confederations Cup, then fill in the pieces for the less important Gold Cup -- which unlike 2007 doesn't have a berth to the next Confederations Cup on the line. The Confederations Cup cannot become a repeat of the Copa America. Still, it'll be a massive challenge for Bradley and his staff to select teams and prepare them for tournaments so close to one another. (The Confederations Cup ends June 28 and the Gold Cup begins July 2, concurrent to the MLS season.)
* MLS vs. Europe -- It seems younger American players feel compelled to "go to Europe" even if it means the middling leagues of the continent to get a real crack at National Team duty. Bob Bradley has given players in MLS a fair shake, but in important games seems to rely on his Euro dudes. Does this matter? Does it only add to the disjointed-ness of the National Team set up? Is it just something to live with and debate?
Closing thoughts
Was that enough to get your wheels spinning? Did I leave any stones unturned?
Remember, not to make it sound important, we Internet fans are probably the only ones that truly care about the fate of the USMNT. You're not getting reasoned thought and analysis on big media like ESPN, so that leaves us as the only way to voice displeasure or happiness with the state of affairs in Chicago. We're not England or any other nation, where the affairs of the national team is front page news.
This is an important year for the USMNT, too. The Confederations Cup might not mean all that much, but outside the World Cup it's the only chance to gauge how far the team has come against the world's best in a pressurized environment. Play to win it, not to experiment. Show you're the elite team that Nike purports you to be.
At the absolute very least, this should be a fun year to follow the team. Let's hope it holds up its end of the bargain.
Before diving headfirst into what figures to be a meaty post, consider these two numbers:
14 -- The number of matches currently on the calendar -- without factoring the Gold Cup, which could be another six.
51 -- The number of players in Bob Bradley's 25-man roster for the Jan. 24 friendly with Sweden combined with players have been in the team over the last six months.
Suffice to say, both those numbers could increase. It wouldn't be outrageous for Bob Bradley to call in close to 70 players for National Team duty. Is this a good thing? We shall see.
Let's examine the state of the National Team ahead of the busy 2009, shall we?
Positional depth charts/analysis
(This is using the assumption of your typical 4-4-2 scenario.)
Goalkeeper -- Short and sweet, the U.S. has plenty of talent with Tim Howard and Brad Guzan as his deputy. One position Bradley doesn't need to worry about in the least. If anything, they need to work on ball distribution to start attacks. Rating: A-
Left back -- Heath Pearce is your de facto starter, though is VORP rating (value over replacement player) is pretty much zero. He's adequate, which isn't necessarily a bad thing. Pearce's only competition is Bradley's would-be adoptive son Jonathon Bornstein. This should actually be a fierce battle and which player goes to the Gold Cup and which goes to Confederations Cup will say a lot. Overall, left back remains a black hole for the U.S. Rating: C-
Central defense -- Though I like to criticize the tandem of Oguchi Onyewu and Carlos Bocanegra, they are solid enough. Will they ever be as cultured as an Italian defense? No, but for CONCACAF they're good enough. Plus they both can get forward and score on set plays, though relying on defenders for offense is a risky proposition. If there's one spot the U.S. has depth in abundance beside goalie, it's here. Guys like Jay DeMerit, Chad Marshall, Danny Califf, Michael Parkhurst and even much-maligned Michael Orozco could step in without much of a dropoff. (Whatever happened to Jimmy Conrad?) Young guys like Sean Franklin or an old hand such as Corey Gibbs could fill in for a game or two.
One thing that would be nice if is the US powers that be placed more value on skill and passing than sheer brute strength in central defenders. Aside from Mexico, the teams in the region are no physical match for the U.S. In a lot of CONCACAF games the defense only needs to make one or two plays, do we have confidence Gooch and Boca will be in the right spot when that happens? Can they cope with speed? If it were up to me, I'd give Bocanegra another shot at leftback. He's made 17 appearances for Stade Rennes there, opposed to just three in the center of defense. The club is in third place in Ligue, so Bradley must consider this option. Rating: B+
Right back -- The U.S. should be able to coax another two years of solid professionalism from Steve Cherundolo. 'Dolo might not bring a ton to the table, but he doesn't take away from it, either. He can score the occasional goal and is adequate enough with delivery from the flanks. Unlike left back there are some other options here, namely Marvell Wynne if he's able to develop some consistency. Rating: B-
Left midfield -- Until writing this you'd say this spot was locked down by DaMarcus Beasley. I like Beasley as much as the next guy and he seems to be one of the few players when he puts on the U.S. shirt shows some guts and doesn't play all wide eyed and innocent. He's been through the wars in Europe with PSV so knows how a big-time soccer player should behave on and off the field. That said, he's fallen out of favor at Rangers, making only four appearances this season. Needless to say, this is a big year for him -- will he return to MLS for a spell? (Could Bradley try to convert him to left back, a la Eddie Lewis? Beasley has always been good getting back to defense. There's time to try this. Another thought.) Bradley should give a youngster like Robbie Rogers a shot to fight for the position or show his worth at the Gold Cup. Rating: B
Central midfielder -- For the time being the U.S. doesn't have a complete two-way midfielder, like the great national teams do. Bradley, too, seems intent of playing two defensive/holding players against any and all opponents. Is this a wise decision considering there's been a bit of a departure from the 'Makalele Role' worldwide, with more emphasis on speed? We'll see.
The U.S. has plenty of thesedefensive types to provide the backline cover -- his son Michael, Maurice Edu, Ricardo Clark, Pablo Mastroeni, Stuart Holden and even Sasha Kljestan or José Francisco Torres. You could even recall a Kyle Beckerman-type, if needed. The question, how can these guys fare against the world's best? Can these control and set the tempo against Brasil and Italy at the Confederations Cup in June? Or will they chase at ghosts? CONCACAF is one thing, but this is the deep end of the pool. The U.S. is going to have to adapt it's gameplay in these games to have any chance. Rating: C
Attacking midfield/second strikers -- Landon Donovan, Freddy Adu, Clint Dempsey, even Stuart Holden. The U.S. has players for this role, but how to effectively use any and all of them remains the million dollar question for Bradley. Against stiffer competition can these guys flash their attacking prowess or simply melt into the background? At least we know Adu can take freekicks with a good rate of success. Rating: B
Right midfield -- Another soft spot in the lineup, assuming a straight 4-4-2. Are Dempsey or Donovan still wasted out here? Eddie Gaven was reborn under Sigi Schmid for Columbus this season and deserves a significant chance. Considering the lack of depth here, a player like John Thorrington could play his way into the mix, even at the age of 29. ... Rating: D+
Forwards -- The Internet fans list compared to Bob Bradley's list here are probably two different sets of encyclopedias. Bradley's list nearly begins and ends at Brian Ching, for better or worse -- depending how you classify Dempsey and Donovan. Fans like myself probably go Altidore, Cooper and then everyone else.
The good thing is that there should be plenty of competition for the striker position. It all depends how Bradley wants to play it. If he wants to go lone striker, Ching is probably best suited as a target man, but can that be counted on for enough offense with Donovan or Dempsey behind him?
One final nugget, fighting for a promotion spot Cardiff City (fourth in the Coca Cola Championship) has only seen fit to start Eddie Johnson three times, and field him nine times overall. He has zero goals and nine shots. You can't squeeze blood from a stone. Sometimes you have to pull off the Band Aid and move on, however painful. ... Rating: B-
Questions/Storylines for 2009
* Will youth be served? -- People like me like to opine ad nausea about the 'A-Team' -- Jozy Altidore and Freddy Adu. All signals from Bradley seem to point toward these two 19-year-olds playing more of a factor after the 2010 World Cup cycle is complete. Let me offer this point, although it's a bit of a stretch. Spain won last June's Euro with only four players over the age of 30 on its roster. Then coach Luis Aragones didn't have an issue with leaving off aged legend Raul in favor of younger dudes like Santi Carzola (23) and David Silva (22).
If Adu and Altidore don't show anything in the opportunities -- hopefully -- give over the year, they don't deserve a spot. But to simply ignore perhaps the best offensive player in the player pool -- Adu -- and potentially more physical striker seems counter productive. Say what you will about Adu, but he is a wizard on the ball, can take free kicks and generally makes something happen when he puts on the U.S. shirt. So what if he's glued to the bench at AS Monaco. He's a play maker, something the U.S. needs.
Let's boil it down to this, who would help the U.S. make strides toward getting past the Group Stage of the World Cup when you're planning the roster -- Adu or a guy like Ricardo Clark?
* What's the formation? -- The U.S. seems limited in a rigid 4-4-2. The personnel doesn't fit. A 4-4-1-1 or better yet 4-2-3-1 seems to best take advantage of the players Bradley has at his disposal. More than a formation, the U.S. would be well-served to develop an identity beyond that of great athletes and questionable soccer players. What
* What's Clint Dempsey's best position? -- Let's simply say that putting Dempsey out on the right side of midfield in a straight 4-4-2 is a waste. Force feeding a lineup with Dempsey and Landon Donovan also doesn't make a lot of sense, since they tend to thrive in similar pockets of the field. This gets thrown out the window if Bradley commits, like Fulham, as Dempsey as a straight-out striker, or slightly withdrawn attacker. Pair him up with Brian Ching, Alitdore or even Adu and see what happens.
* Whither Donovan? -- Are the U.S. ever going to get past the point where it's not totally reliant on Landon Donovan to win games? Will his time at Bayern Munich make him the player we U.S. fans wish he could be? (Is he coming back to the Galaxy, which could hurt affect his availability for all matches. This would be a good thing, simply to see the team exist without him, improved from his stint in Bavaria or not.) Are we just nit-picking anyway? He does put up the goals. Still, can Donovan cater his game with play alongside Adu or as a forward or even better yet on the right side of midfield? Can both he and the team adapt to bring out the best in each other?
* Can Michael Bradley become our version of Cesc Fabregas? -- Or Michael Ballack or Steven Gerrard or Andrea Pirlo, etc. Now, Bradley will never be those players, but an elite two-way midfield maestro would open up so many options for the squad. Bradley has the energy to go up and down the field and a keen eye for goal, but can assert himself and dictate the run of play? Not yet, if ever. If Bradley, or someone else can develop into a true two-way player the U.S. can revert to the 'diamond' midfield, opening up a lot of things.
* Did Bob Bradley, et al learn from 2007? -- You can't half-ass it again, well maybe you can. The Federation, you'd think, would send a full 'A' lineup to South Africa for the Confederations Cup, then fill in the pieces for the less important Gold Cup -- which unlike 2007 doesn't have a berth to the next Confederations Cup on the line. The Confederations Cup cannot become a repeat of the Copa America. Still, it'll be a massive challenge for Bradley and his staff to select teams and prepare them for tournaments so close to one another. (The Confederations Cup ends June 28 and the Gold Cup begins July 2, concurrent to the MLS season.)
* MLS vs. Europe -- It seems younger American players feel compelled to "go to Europe" even if it means the middling leagues of the continent to get a real crack at National Team duty. Bob Bradley has given players in MLS a fair shake, but in important games seems to rely on his Euro dudes. Does this matter? Does it only add to the disjointed-ness of the National Team set up? Is it just something to live with and debate?
Closing thoughts
Was that enough to get your wheels spinning? Did I leave any stones unturned?
Remember, not to make it sound important, we Internet fans are probably the only ones that truly care about the fate of the USMNT. You're not getting reasoned thought and analysis on big media like ESPN, so that leaves us as the only way to voice displeasure or happiness with the state of affairs in Chicago. We're not England or any other nation, where the affairs of the national team is front page news.
This is an important year for the USMNT, too. The Confederations Cup might not mean all that much, but outside the World Cup it's the only chance to gauge how far the team has come against the world's best in a pressurized environment. Play to win it, not to experiment. Show you're the elite team that Nike purports you to be.
At the absolute very least, this should be a fun year to follow the team. Let's hope it holds up its end of the bargain.
Labels: bob bradley, Freddy Adu, Jozy Altidore, Landon Donovan, Soccer, USMNT
sadly Eddie Johnson has failed even in championship level in England its bit frustrating given his basic talents of pace should make him at least good enough for that level but still his first touch is too bad even for the second tier.
Plus yes there no premier league game but there is this thing called the FA Cup this weekend its been going on for over 100 years.
yours
Richard Hooker
Manchester, England, UK
Good stuff..
I think Charlie Davies should play a role for this team (in place of EJ permanently). I mean, this guy is actually producing for his club team and although it wasn't spectacular, he scored a goal in one of his first real Nats games.
I used to think Boca should slide to left back to make room for another of our many central backs but I think him and Gooch have developed a pretty good chemistry. I've always been a fan of trying Beasley back there but I doubt it'll happen.
4-2-3-1 should be the default lineup for the US with the current roster. It would allow the use of the two holding midfielders and also allow Donovan, Dempsey and Adu/Beasley to just flow around a central striker. I'd prefer Cooper or Jozy up front over Ching but I'm preaching to the choir on this site.
Technically, Dempsey lines up at either right or left midfield for Fulham who play a 4-4-2 with Johnson and Zamora up top. Hodgson though seems to allow his midfield a good amount of freedom to move and switch around. Fulham also don't play with a Makalele type which is why it is so good to see them playing well. If Dempsey is allowed freedom then he is unstoppable just as he was for the Revs because he can score with both feet and his head.
Ironically, Bob Bradley doesn't seem to understand the proper way to use his son as a midfielder. At Heerenveen, he was a much more attack minded midfielder and he thrived with them. Bob forces him to play a holding role and wastes him.
We are going to go three and out at the Confederations Cup in a preview of the three and out we will do a year later at the World Cup. I would hope that we will soon see the end of Bradley but I don't have any faith in Sunil Gulati. Maybe Nike will step in and demand that the US make some changes or else Nike pulls the cash.
About a month and a week til the Mexico game...
The first problem I would like addressed would be the lack of replacements for the outside backs. Bornstein and Wynne are not strong enough. I can't figure out how France can have 5 World Class left backs while the US doesn't have one. Is Spector still in the plans?
Up top I would like Jozy( he is getting time at Villareal) and Dempsey( 2 goals against Chelsea) to play a conventional 2 foward set up. I don't know which would be the striker or withdrawn.
Donavon at right mid/wing/ Hopefully he gets some time at Bayern.
Adu - I see Freddie as a first off the bench attacker if we are down a goal or need a spark. He could replace the withdrawn foward or go outside.
I'm guessing Bradley will still play 2 defensive mids because they don't have an offensive minded player. Bradley and whoever... but not Ricardo or Pablo they have had their 10 chances. Torres, Edu, Sascha.